The appellant retained the respondent paralegal firm to assist with a WSIB claim under a contingency fee agreement.
After the claim was approved, the appellant sought to terminate the retainer, arguing it was unenforceable.
The Small Claims Court and Divisional Court upheld the agreement.
On appeal, the Court of Appeal held that contingency fee agreements between paralegals and clients are per se champertous and invalid because paralegals lack the regulatory oversight that justifies permitting such agreements for lawyers.
However, the Court found that an absolute bar on quantum meruit recovery for illegal contracts would cause an unacceptable injustice here, as the paralegal provided services in good faith.
The Court awarded the respondent $1,300 in quantum meruit.
